Ersatz TLS discussion
note: This topic has been closed to new comments.
Weekly TLS
>
What Are We Reading? 16 Nov 2020
If anyone here is also on FB, I highly recommend 'liking' the Heywood Hill bookshop. Each Wednesday they post 'What We Are Reading.' I often find yet another book to add to my list.
MK wrote about Heywood I’ll bookshop."That brought back memories from my short FB days when I would wander around that site looking at the books which I couldn’t afford. Back I went after reading your post to revel in their ‘rare books’, dream of finding a copy, an affordable one, of Anatole France’s The Revolt of the Angels with original illustrations.
It’s a site for imaginative indulgence.
CCCubbon wrote: "It’s a site for imaginative indulgence."Lovely CCC. Others would have vulgarly called this 'book porn'. 😊
Boo wrote: "hi all first time caller. currently reading the lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch."Hi Boo! Please let us know what you think of it when you finish.
AB76 wrote: "IN HAZARD comedy critter update, not sure if i mentioned Thomas, the first mates pet lemur, who sleeps in the foghorn on board the SS Achimedes and is treated with the same rank as his masterAnyw..."
AB76 wrote: "poor Thomas has been sick in the foghorn....i really hope they dont encounter any fog in the next 50 pages....lol"
Haha, that made me laugh out loud!
Machenbach wrote: "Justine wrote: "While waiting for my library delivery, I engaged in two quick reads: Arthur Machen's The Inmost Light, ... Ah well, you gave it a pop."Yeah, I guess these things happen, even between the best of friends. Still, Iain Sinclair's My Favourite London Devils, which just arrived, looks good. He even includes Roland Camberton, who I thought was only now known to Evan aka Leo Toadstool and me.
Machenbach wrote: "What Maisie Knew does these things better imo"I'll second that. Have you read The Ivory Tower?
For Lisa lljones - Ive just received my copy of Colum McCann's 'Apeirogon' on your recomendation. Looking forward to delving into it!!
scarletnoir wrote: "Reen wrote: "Are you enjoying Jónasson CCC? I heard him interviewed on radio here this morning and am thinking my husband would enjoy his books. I might too; I have a bit of an Iceland obsession. H..."Ah thanks scarlet, CCC, Gpfr, AB76 for all the Icelandic literature recommends. My husband has read more of the books than I have but they are around, he left one of Yrsa Sigurðardóttir's on the bed for me earlier. An unusual calling card but welcome nonetheless. I absolutely loved Trapped and have watched both series and eagerly await The Valhalla Murders having just finished DNA last Saturday. I have a weakness for angst-ridden men of the north I think. Not reading much at all at the moment; am half-blind from overexposure to a computer screen all day and Flora could be dead by now for all I know. Hope all well with everyone here.
giveusaclue wrote: "AB76 wrote: "IN HAZARD comedy critter update, not sure if i mentioned Thomas, the first mates pet lemur, who sleeps in the foghorn on board the SS Achimedes and is treated with the same rank as his..."it had same effect on me, Hughes slips in some very good british comedy among a serious short novel set during a natural disaster
Mod
Yay!
And so I have finally allowed myself to watch The West Wing again (seems I am not the only one https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-ra...). It still breaks my heart pretty much every single episode to compare and contrast with the state of the world.Tonight was In Excelsis Deo, the first Christmas episode. President Bartlet sneaks out of the White House to buy some Christmas presents at Rare Books. Try as I might, I couldn't see any mylar on any shelves in that specialist bookstore. What did he get you may (or not) ask?
The Fables of Phaedrus '1886, first edition, red leather label, gilt lettering, engraved frontice'
The Nature of Things : a didascalic poem ; translated from the Latin of Titus Lucretius Carus. He thinks his daughter will like it better than a new stereo because 'it's got brown Moroccan spine labels'
Life of Epicurus - two volumes
He got plenty more, but they didn't get explicitly mentioned in the episode. As I said: compare and contrast at your own (mental health's) peril.
The Onion features Highlights Of Obama’s New Memoir: Entire chapter dedicated to memory of how incredible it felt to smoke nine cigarettes a day.(There actually is a chapter about the pleasures of smoking in Buñuel's memoir, My Last Sigh.)
Sometimes regrets having turned America into an atheistic communist wasteland.
Lljones wrote: "Alan wrote: "'I cried when it was all over': the actor who brought 120 characters to lifeThere are some links to the WG website in the comments to the Guardian article which might be useful.
Paul wrote: "I've been reading slowly these days. Mostly because my normal reading time is otherwise occupied these days, discussing at great depth farts and colic with a 2 month old who is very chatty.But th..."
"Enjoy" isn't probably a word I'd use to describe The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper but it is excellently done. She puts a very worthwhile perspective onto the Jack The Ripper story by focusing on the victims. Highly recommended.
AlbyBeliever wrote: "Hi everyone! I'm going to post about this month's reading later in the week or next week, but today I'm going to shamelessly exploit TLS for Christmas present inspiration. What would you recommend ..." I would buy The Offing for all of them. One of the highlights of the year for me. I've loved all of Ben Myers's books which are somehow all different but this one really is wonderful. One of those books you want everyone to read.
MachYes, the Kees van Dongen illustrations.
Mod
I watched it again a while ago and I totally agree with you - in spite of its now manifest rare book selling failings :)
It's accused of making Bartlett too perfect, but while some may see it as pandering to our lefty, liberal, do-gooding hearts, he's not shown as perfect which for me is one of the great things about it. He does and says some things I object to, but the series shows people who are on opposing sides but who are honestly trying to do their best for their country.
Machenbach wrote: "Justine wrote: "He even includes Roland Camberton, who I thought was only now known to Evan aka Leo Toadstool and me.."Yes, he's most concerned with East London and the old City and has a long-st..."
have any of you explored Amy Levy, she was a jewish writer who died in 1889, aged only 27. Persephone have her novel "Ruben Sachs" in print and i loved it. Of course her writing era was just before the large influx of jews escaping Tsarist Russia emigrated to London, of which Baron, Camberton and Litivinoff were all descendents of. Dont forget Gerald Kersh too..
Re recent comments on Vita Sackville-West. I read The Edwardians recently. It certainly provides a colourful depiction of high society in that era but I didn’t find any of the characters particularly interesting, rather annoying in fact. But is it necessary for the reader to empathize? Taking it as a fictional depiction of the time, I’m glad I read it - but how close was it really to life then? It brings to mind “The Crown” and current discussions as to how far a film about real people can go from facts.
Machenbach wrote: "It looks like a cafe or a restaurant that's been dressed to somebody's idea of a rare bookstore, but which in fact looks like a bog-standard second-hand bookshop, complete with public library style shelving and books that have obviously been bought by the yard by the set designers."Ah, yes, maybe I wasn't very clear. I actually burst out laughing when I saw it, and said to my husband that a few 'second-lifers' (by that we mean you forest dwellers) would have a field day with that 'Rare Books' shop. Even to my untrained eyes it was woefully inadequate, and I did imagine the set designer buying books in bulk the way you mention. The conspicuous absence of mylar (or equivalent) is for me now another clue. And these shelves, and the lino on the floor, ugh...
But perhaps they did a bit more research on the 2 books that get more attention? How likely is it that these would be quite rare and something to be coveted? I was lazy and copy/pasted parts of the transcript of the episode, but it was wrong in places (e.g. replacing 'didascalic' - @Swelter/Bill, you know what this is now! - with 'viviscalic'), so double-checked it was 'Moroccan' in the episode itself, and indeed it is. What are 'Morroco' spine labels and why is that cool?
As for you not having watched The West Wing... Lucky you!!
Don't let that small glitch get in the way, it is incredibly written and acted, and impossibly witty. You'll probably fall a bit in love with 2, or 5, of the characters. Don't take my word for it, ask MsC or TMW. All on Channel 4, in a remastered version (looks better than my DVDs).
@Gpfr, totally agree with you. Upon rewatching it, I do have qualms with some of the things Bartlet, or Toby, or even - god forbid! - Josh, says or does. They are all flawed, but I do love them so dearly. CJ is still an absolute goddess. (I had totally forgotten about Mandy.) The only thing I could do without: the rousing music.
Boo wrote: "hi all first time caller. currently reading the lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch."@machenbach. Tried to reply to a message from @MsC, but it bounced back. Please pass on, if you can, that I’m hoping that the new Sylvia Pankhurst biog will appear for me later in the year. Thanks.
Lass wrote: "Tried to reply to a message from @MsC, but it bounced back."I might be wrong Lass, but have you tried to reply to an *email* you might have received from her? If so, if MsC has set up - like me - not to divulge her email address, then the only way to communicate directly, apart from making a comment on her profile as you've done recently, is to use the envelope icon at the top right of the page. The content of the messages between you two will be send in emails too, but you won't be able to reply to them via your email, only via the Goodreads platform. I had no problem being in touch with her that way...
Lass wrote: "Boo wrote: "hi all first time caller. currently reading the lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch."@machenbach. Tried to reply to a message from @MsC, but it bounced back. Please pass on, if you ca..."
Lass wrote: "Boo wrote: "hi all first time caller. currently reading the lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch."
@machenbach. Tried to reply to a message from @MsC, but it bounced back. Please pass on, if you ca..."
Oh, thank you. Having a little difficulty navigating here. Ageing brain cells!
Skippy Dies by Paul MurrayI bought this book because it was only 50p and came with a 'Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award' recommendation.
I am not very interested in 14yo boys attending a posh Catholic boarding school in Ireland. Even less (read: not at all) in string theory, video games, porn, drug dealing, mysticism…
Abandoned after about 20 pages the book gathered some years worth of dust until MissBurgundy came along. She loved it, so I decided to give it another go.
To kill your hero on the first pages is a bold move. To follow this drumbeat with 460 pages (of 660 in total) leading up to that pivotal point without anything remotely dramatic happening takes a confident writer. To pull it off without boring readers like me takes a fine writer.
What kept me reading was Murray’s lively writing style, and, above all, the care he takes developping his characters, the room he gives them, the subtle details he adds, incrementally. His tenderness towards them, his sensitivity. There is Carl, not nice at all, a budding criminal, dangerous, unpredictable. And there is Carl, a 15 year old kid, lost, bewildered, desperate to be loved. Does that make him sympathetic? No. But Murray gives him humanity and, therefore, dignity. Like any true Christian would.
There is a lot to ponder about Christian concepts in this book.Especially in the third part, after Skippy’s death, when Murray turns up the heat under the simmering broth until it starts to spit and flow over.
Sin, guilt, atonement, punishment, redemption…
After the first 460 pages I thought this was a good book. After I had finished it I thought it was a great book. Not without flaws. Books (and people) without flaws are rare beasts.
I laughed, I cried. I am still thinking about it. I will read it again. It deserves to become a modern classic.
Reading what I have written I am sure I did not come close to doing justice to this complex book. Flawed will have to do.
Thank you, MissB!
Mod
Lass, just to clarify: When someone sends you a message through the Goodreads interface (via the envelope icon on top menu), the GR system sends an email to you with the contents of that message. That message is from a 'no-reply' address at GR, and would bounce back if you tried to reply.
Machenbach wrote: "They're just labels affixed to the spines of books that have either lost or never had author/title information. 'Morocco' is a particularly tough, dyeable (is that a word), and attractively grained form of leather (goatskin), which is more expensive than most other typical bookbinding materials, but a Morocco label isn't in itself anything to get very excited about. In my photo the Pater and The Ambassadors are fully bound in Morocco."Thanks! Ah, gosh, for me the leather on the Pater is different from that of The Ambassadors (which looks to me more like The Reverberator), I'd be a complete muppet and taken for a ride so easily by any unscrupulous seller.
And thanks for the blog, I love the fact that this was addressed by the British Library. The 'viviscalic' though I think is this:
https://www.rct.uk/collection/1057332...
https://www.rct.uk/collection/1057333...
Hi - First time posting here. Apologies if I mess up. I was vermontlogger on TLS. Decided it was time to abbreviate myself.
– Ivan Turgenev.
An early novella. One summer evening deep in the countryside, neighbours gather for dinner. A visitor is surprised to find two accomplished and attractive young women among the company. Another wonderful example of the master’s melancholy art.
(Seems to be available in English only as a POD. Read it in French - , Folio, €2.)
– James Pope-Hennessy, ed. Hugo Vickers (2019).
If it had not been for a review on TLS, I would never ever have read this. And what a strange conception, a bunch of written-out interview notes preparatory to JPH’s actual biography of Queen Mary (1959). It was a delight. Every eccentricity of the royal circle is on view, and related with stylish humour by JPH. Anecdotes galore, physical appearances sculpted, odd facts noted. Who would have imagined that the wife of George V liked to read and , or to be precise to have them read to her by a Lady in Waiting? A cream-tea of a book.
(I thought I might have met the Wurttembergs who feature here. Looking at their pictures and dates it is clear the people I met were members of the next generation.)
– Ivan Turgenev.
An early novella. One summer evening deep in the countryside, neighbours gather for dinner. A visitor is surprised to find two accomplished and attractive young women among the company. Another wonderful example of the master’s melancholy art.
(Seems to be available in English only as a POD. Read it in French - , Folio, €2.)
– James Pope-Hennessy, ed. Hugo Vickers (2019).
If it had not been for a review on TLS, I would never ever have read this. And what a strange conception, a bunch of written-out interview notes preparatory to JPH’s actual biography of Queen Mary (1959). It was a delight. Every eccentricity of the royal circle is on view, and related with stylish humour by JPH. Anecdotes galore, physical appearances sculpted, odd facts noted. Who would have imagined that the wife of George V liked to read and , or to be precise to have them read to her by a Lady in Waiting? A cream-tea of a book.
(I thought I might have met the Wurttembergs who feature here. Looking at their pictures and dates it is clear the people I met were members of the next generation.)
I guess I did mess up. I'll try again without trying to do bold or italics, which just wiped all the titles out.
“The Quiet Backwater” – Ivan Turgenev
An early novella. One summer evening deep in the countryside, neighbours gather for dinner. A visitor is surprised to find two accomplished and attractive young women among the company. Another wonderful example of the master’s melancholy art.
(Seems to be available in English only as a POD. Read it in French - Les Eaux tranquilles, Folio, €2.)
“The Quest for Queen Mary” – James Pope-Hennessy, ed. Hugo Vickers (2019)
If it had not been for a review on TLS, I would never ever have read this. And what a strange conception, a bunch of written-out interview notes preparatory to JPH’s actual biography of Queen Mary (1959). It was a delight. Every eccentricity of the royal circle is on view, and related with stylish humour by JPH. Anecdotes galore, physical appearances sculpted, odd facts noted. Who would have imagined that the wife of George V liked to read The Magic Mountain and The Brothers Karamazov, or to be precise to have them read to her by a Lady in Waiting? A cream-tea of a book.
(I thought I might have met the Wurttembergs who feature here. Looking at their pictures and dates it is clear the people I met were members of the next generation.)
An early novella. One summer evening deep in the countryside, neighbours gather for dinner. A visitor is surprised to find two accomplished and attractive young women among the company. Another wonderful example of the master’s melancholy art.
(Seems to be available in English only as a POD. Read it in French - Les Eaux tranquilles, Folio, €2.)
“The Quest for Queen Mary” – James Pope-Hennessy, ed. Hugo Vickers (2019)
If it had not been for a review on TLS, I would never ever have read this. And what a strange conception, a bunch of written-out interview notes preparatory to JPH’s actual biography of Queen Mary (1959). It was a delight. Every eccentricity of the royal circle is on view, and related with stylish humour by JPH. Anecdotes galore, physical appearances sculpted, odd facts noted. Who would have imagined that the wife of George V liked to read The Magic Mountain and The Brothers Karamazov, or to be precise to have them read to her by a Lady in Waiting? A cream-tea of a book.
(I thought I might have met the Wurttembergs who feature here. Looking at their pictures and dates it is clear the people I met were members of the next generation.)
Machenbach wrote: "Justine wrote: "He even includes Roland Camberton, who I thought was only now known to Evan aka Leo Toadstool and me.."Yes, he's most concerned with East London and the old City and has a long-st..."
I was going to comment on the gender thing. That's why I'm interested in somewhat obscure writers like Barbara Noble (The House Opposite) who provide a female perspective on London - in this case, during the Blitz.
I've read some Sinclair and agree that he brings an interesting perspective to the part of the metropolis I've come to know fairly well - and that he's best taken in small doses.
Georg wrote: " Skippy Dies by Paul Murray..."I've been waiting for your review Georg and it doesn't disappoint. In fact it's far more thoughtful and analytic than mine. I agree with you that there are flaws - just a few, that don't need mentioning in case of spoilers. And I agree with Machenbach that Paul Murray's other books are not in the same league, but as I think we said "Where do you go after Skippy?".
I promised I'd put up my unpublished review from a few months back after Georg had read the book, so here goes:
I finished my third read of Paul Murray’s Skippy Dies recently, and it’s just as good as I thought it was the first two times. I have two friends who gave up on it and I believe some TLS posters have too. But I think it’s one of the best novels written in recent years.
It’s a long book – 650 pages – and although I couldn’t put it down I can see others might give up somewhere before the end, in which case they won’t see the full picture.
It’s set in the early noughties in a catholic boys’ school near Dublin. There’s a big cast of characters – schoolboys, teachers, catholic priests, pupils at the neighbouring girls’ school, a few suspicious characters who hang around the area, and some pupils’ parents. Skippy is a 14 year old boarder there who dies at the start of the book – no spoiler there. We then take 450 pages to find out the circumstances of his death. The final part takes place after his death and shows the effect it has on everyone around him.
You may be surprised that reviews on the cover call the book funny, hilarious, a tragicomedy, and with past reads I’ve disagreed with that and thought of it only as a tragedy, but this time round I found myself laughing quite a lot. Murray’s ear for dialogue is so good, and the boys’ conversations are typically adolescent – rude and witty. But it’s not just dialogue that Murray does well – all his writing is a joy to read.
Anything further I say about it risks being a spoiler. I love it because the characters are so real - even those who society would criticise have backgrounds that explain why they have become that way. It addresses a lot of contemporary issues and the plot/plots are so well worked out, right to the very last page. But in the end it is a heart-breaking story.
Georg wrote: " Skippy Dies by Paul MurrayI bought this book because it was only 50p and came with a 'Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award' recommendation.
I am not very interested in 14yo boys ..."
Thank you, LL. Am sorted......possibly.
Russell wrote: "I guess I did mess up. I'll try again without trying to do bold or italics, which just wiped all the titles out."Hi Russell/vermontlogger! The one good thing about goodreads is that you can edit your post (it does come with its own issues but...). So you can always edit* the bold problem in your original post (and delete your newer post) if you so wish. I suspect (but not sure), that you may have forgotten the / in [/b] (replace [] by <>), to tell it where to stop. You can check that with the '(preview)' underneath the post, similar to what we had on the Guardian.
*In my desktop version, the reply/delete/edit buttons are at the bottom right of each post, but apparently for those on smartphone/tablet, it might be completely at the bottom of the discussion page.
Mod
..."
Here's another little tip for you, Lass: when using the 'reply' function, click on the link at the bottom of the message, not the top. ;-)
Machenbach wrote: "I do know enough to see that The Aspern Papers one in my photo is quite amateurish.Ah! Then again, I'm not sure why, to me maybe the horizontal thingies are not as sharply done, and the leather is just not particularly nice (all very technical, as you can tell).
Having said that, I did get The Reverberator rebound by a local bookbinder because the original book was falling to pieces."
Oh, lovely gallery! The restoration one reminds me of The Repair Shop. Love the The New Examen one (simply because I'm a sucker for this colour of leather and I love the details on each side of the horizontal thingies) https://www.andrewsims.co.uk/galleryr...
Anyone interested in Jean Rhys? The British Library is hosting a zoom discussion today at 19.30 GMT. £5https://www.bl.uk/events/whats-so-gre...
AB76 wrote: "Machenbach wrote: "Justine wrote: "He even includes Roland Camberton, who I thought was only now known to Evan aka Leo Toadstool and me.."Yes, he's most concerned with East London and the old Cit..."
I haven't read either Levy or Kersh, but will look into them. Thanks.
Machenbach wrote: "I'm gonna horrify you by admitting that I've never seen The West Wing,"Is it more horrifying to learn that a Welshman has never seen The West Wing or that an American is in a similar state of innocence? Reader, I confess that I am such an American.
In Hazard is an enthralling read for such a short novel (148 pages), though its a novel that belies its brevity. Some short novels can be just dispatched in two reads if you want to (i always try and pace myself with reading, no hour plus binges), Hughes is a master of wringing more out of a situation than some writers may, the best thing is how he shows men under pressure and their reaction to that pressure. One of the soundest soaks in the calm of Norfolk,VA, is a jibbering wreck in the storm, while one of irritable, fastidious crew members becomes a reliable and brave, uncomplaining star as the seas heave....
Hi Russell/vermontlogger! The one good thing about goodreads...
Thanks for the tips. I will study them carefully before my next post!
Thanks for the tips. I will study them carefully before my next post!
Bill wrote: "Is it more horrifying to learn that a Welshman has never seen The West Wing or that an American is in a similar state of innocence? Reader, I confess that I am such an American."William! I am aghast. Shame on you.
(More seriously, you should give it a go perhaps, you might actually enjoy it!)
Alwynne wrote: "AB76 wrote: "In Hazard is an enthralling read for such a short novel (148 pages), though its a novel that belies its brevity. Some short novels can be just dispatched in two reads if you want to (i..."i am amazed that i have never heard of it before i purchased it. I am from a nautical family, my late uncle was in the navy , plus almost all the men in the maternal side of the family and he knew almost all the novels there were about the sea but i dont think he knew this one either
To be exact: Merchant and Royal Navy....
Russell wrote: "Thanks for the tips. I will study them carefully before my next post!"You're welcome! You don't have to though, you know. It is a bit of hassle, and your posts, whether all in bold or not at all, were very clear.
Mod
National Book Awards announced yesterday.
Booker Prizes will be announced in a few hours.
And Tournament of Books longlist will be announced tomorrow (link forthcoming).
Machenbach wrote: "I went to a lecture on this, once. I even came back with a poster, but never put it up 'cos, like, I'm not a geek. As if. Pssh."How cute, you still care that we may think of you as a geek. As if that ship had not sailed a looong time ago.
Thanks for the nomenclature (ribs I'll remember). Yes, that lettering would drive @nsz nuts.
(Oh, I've just skimmed read about The Great Omar, what a double tragedy - good on Sangorski for having tried to save that woman's life...)
Edit: book porn gallery (aka peacock galore): https://www.pinterest.com/healthyweig...
Machenbach wrote: "Lljones wrote: "National Book Awards announced yesterday.."Somewhat surprised to see Tokyo Ueno Station win the best translated fiction award. I thought it was alright, but not th..."
i was reading it into the xmas season last year and then i just stopped, cant remember why, i thought it had some appeal but for the life of me cant remember why i ditched it. I guess Xmas intervened, stuffing my face while five neices and nephews decided to ride me around my parents main room.....(sighs.....xmas.....nostalgia for a normal xmas....being the uncle mule...)
Gladarvor wrote: "(More seriously, you should give it a go perhaps, you might actually enjoy it!)" I haven’t been keeping statistics, so this may be a false impression, but it seems to me that most of the readers who mentioned The West Wing back in TL&S days were from outside the US. Though I’m sure it must have had a sizable domestic audience, it’s hard for me to imagine Americans exposed to the daily firehouse of national political news who want to relax by watch an entertainment centered around US politics.
On reflection, this may also be an unconscious reason that I gave up on reading Gore Vidal's "Narratives of Empire" series.
FrancesBurgundy wrote: "Georg wrote: " Skippy Dies by Paul Murray..."I've been waiting for your review Georg and it doesn't disappoint. In fact it's far more thoughtful and analytic than mine. I agree with you that ther..."
But it’s not just dialogue that Murray does well – all his writing is a joy to read.
I couldn't agree more.
But in the end it is a heart-breaking story.
It is a heart-breaking story. But, in the end, for me, there was the word 'hope', spelled in capital letters.
This topic has been frozen by the moderator. No new comments can be posted.
Ersatz TLS
Books mentioned in this topic
The Unremembered Places: Exploring Scotland's Wild Histories (other topics)The Negro Grandsons of Vercingetorix (other topics)
Memoirs of a Porcupine (other topics)
Black Bazaar (other topics)
The Death of Comrade President (other topics)
More...
The tone grew on me and I now think of it as friendly rather than blokey and jokey.
It's a great book. Parikian covers a lot of ground from spiders in the sink via storm petrels to stargazing, from Darwin via Peter Scott to volunteers at the observatory in the Northumbrian dark sky Park. He goes out and does things, experiencing his chosen bits of the natural world first hand.
Will try his book about birds as recommended by, I think, FrancesBurgundy last week.